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edgrr_gw

room feels/looks cold

15 years ago

Hi, I'm redecorating a bedroom I had in the basement, but I feel it's too cold. The walls are like an icy/slate blue with a lot of silver accents (wall plates, frames). I feel like the colors are too neutral and cold and need help brining some warmth into the room. I especially need help picking out window treatment. The problem is the walls stick out a bit at the bottom half to sort of make a shelf throughout the whole bedroom, which makes picking out the curtains a bit difficult. I was thinking some brown blinds. Any suggestions? I will post pictures as soon as I can.

Comments (29)

  • 15 years ago

    Autumn oranges look pretty with blue, I think. And adding some texture like a fluffy knit afghan or faux fur throw will warm things up and make it soft and romantic, too. Post pics?

  • 15 years ago

    Photos will make all the difference in the advice you get. Speaking generally, rooms look and feel cold from lack of lighting and personal effects.

    Brown blinds may look nice, but you have an opportunity to add some softness and color to the room with drapes. Depending on how high the shelf is, you could have the drapes stop at the shelf.

    I am working on my bedroom which has light blue walls with white trim, furniture and bedspread. Putting a large picture on the wall that had a spot of red in it made a big difference.

  • 15 years ago

    Here are some pictures. I didn't take a picture with the headboard because the bed was undone =)

  • 15 years ago

    I really like your room! You can definitely pick up the warm red/orange/rust color from the picture and use it in other places throughout the room. Maybe a folded throw at the foot of the bed, and some object on the bedside table or other surface. I would definitely use draperies even if they stop at the shelf line.

    Is there room for a small chair in the corner between the picture and the window where you could put a warm-colored fabric pillow?

  • 15 years ago

    Make the bed and take another picture. We would like to see the headboard and anything above it.

    But, comments thus far: beautiful shade of blue! Maybe paint the shelf blue to make it disappear. Change out the boob light in the ceiling. Bring in some orange accents, pulling the color from the photo. New window treatment will change the look of the room - I would go with fabric in place of a brown blind. Crystal lamps would give the room some bling or maybe wall mounted plug-in bedside lamps with silver trim.

  • 15 years ago

    Yes, there is. That's a good idea. Maybe a white chair?

    This is actually about half of the room. It's more of a rectangle. I don't mind moving things around. I'll try to get a picture of the other side by the door and the other window.

    At first, I was leaning towards brown, but the autumn orange really got me thinking.Especially since there's some orange in the picture.

  • 15 years ago

    Here's the other side.


    Here's the bed. I also forgot to mention the room was just painted, so I'm missing a lot of wall decor and I'm open to ideas.




    In this one you can see a support that was covered with mirrors.



    Also, as you can see, another problem is the uneven ceiling because of the ducts and other stuff. I like the idea of taking out that ceiling light. I changed my mind about the chair. Now, I'm leaning towards a beige chair with maybe an orange throw pillow?

  • 15 years ago

    Pretty color. I always say I wouldn't use blue in my house, but every time I see a similar shade of that color, it makes me rethink it. I really like it, especially with the silver accents.

    I have a very similar room that is more beige in color, very neutral that my son picked out (dare he have color), and we painted the shelf and the walls the same color. I'd give that a try to minimize the look of the shelf and cozy it up a bit, then, yes, fabric that place up!

    How deep is the shelf? Can you find a curtain rod that will bring the fabric out and away from the wall a bit and let the curtains fall naturally, or is the shelf too big to do that? Hard to tell from the picture, but it looks pretty narrow, in front of the window at least. If it's just a matter of a couple of inches, you might be able to pull that off, but I'm guessing no, since you mentioned it. Obviously you don't want it way away from the wall at the top of the window.

  • 15 years ago

    There's so much you can do, its end-less. I did this room for a young adult a while back and it may not be your style. I'm posting to show how just a vibrant rug can make a difference, or tricks with paint and accessories.

  • 15 years ago

    Let's see:

    -How about a starburst mirror above the bed?

    -Yes -- touches of orange or yellow would pick up on the color of the main artwork. Add a grid of black-and-white photos -- mat them in the same orange or yellow and frame in black. Hang them on the wall near the artwork.

    -Consider adding a soft Roman shade to the window -- check Ikea or Target for ideas.

    -Add another lamp to the top of the tall dresser. A short round one would be very nice. Additional lamplight always helps a room feel more warm and cozy.

    -Add a single long orange pillow to the bed -- and fold a cozy coverlet or blanket across the bottom -- just for the cooler months.

  • 15 years ago

    I wouldn't mind letting them hang like that. I was actually thinking about it, but I'm not sure what it would look like at the top with a gap.
    Hm... I think I might paint the shelf to get rid of it. I'll have to look around for the starburst mirror because there are so many different styles. I was considering roman shades, too. The vibrant rug is also a good idea. I was planning on buying a boxy blue/gray one, but now that the orange is coming in, I'll have to look into a vibrant colored rug to try to make everything connect.

  • 15 years ago

    Adding warm colors in a large area rug, bedding, curtains, throw blankets, and possibly an accent chair will certainly add warmth to the space. Some warm colors include: red, orange, brown, yellow, beige. Right now you do have only cool colors: blue, gray/silver, black, white. Personally, I love the idea of throwing in some vibrant orange.

    Here are some ideas for oranges.


  • 15 years ago

    I love how the orange bedding looks with the white and the blue walls.

    I'm not sure whether I should buy curtains that go down to the floor or only to where the shelf is.

  • 15 years ago

    How deep is the ledge? If it's not too deep, I might try a double bracket and either put a short sheer or nothing on the inside hole. That would allow the curtains to drape normally (or almost normally) past the ledge. But, I personally much prefer floor length drapes.

    For example, this bracket is 7.1" deep. This means the curtains wouldn't stick out quite 7.1" from the window, but probably at least 6" (this is just a guess).

    Alternatively, you could look at roman blinds, which are my preference when floor length curtains are not an option.

  • 15 years ago

    I'm with prickly pear and would find or make a rod that sticks out far enough that you could hang drapes to the floor.
    You have a lovely room and adding colorful drapes along with other decorative items to bring out the golds and oranges in the art would really warm it up.

  • 15 years ago

    Your room looks great, I agree with adding in some orange.

    Our family room is a close color, here's a pic just adding in a vintage orange chair and some warm wood tone accessories :

    {{!gwi}}

  • 15 years ago

    When it comes to drapes, I tend to be a traditionalist, insisting that the drape stop exactly 1/2 inch from the floor. But for windows like yours, my preference would be to stop the drape at the shelf.

    Roman shades and the like are very nice, but they can present problems depending on your need for privacy and light. Open, they offer no privacy, closed they tend to block the light more than I would like. If you go with drapes, you could keep the mini-blinds, which I know some will say is a huge design faux-pas. But they are functional.

  • 15 years ago

    I agree that you definitely need to open it up. I would do a nice duvet cover and pick up those orangey tones in the photo. You have some fun stuff and there is personality in the room, it's just missing the finishing touches. I found this article on pairing fire and ice and why it works :) (icy blue with fiery orange) Hope it helps!

    I would definitely change out the blinds to something a little softer - and I agree with graywings you should not go to the floor with them. It's a modern space, keep it that way. Best of luck!

    Here is a link that might be useful: [Great Color Pairings: Fire and Ice[(https://www.houzz.com/magazine/great-color-pairings-fire-and-ice-stsetivw-vs~751928)

  • 15 years ago

    I'd go with the wt down to the ledge. There is nothing wrong with the ledge, so I would not worry about changing the color or trying to hide it. It is what it is and can function nicely as a shelf.

    My first thought was a soft yellow would make it very pretty but the picture's yellow is stronger than I would have gone. Perhaps you can match the same color and then go lighter a few shades for your accent color. I'd do white wts but maybe get a valance with the light yellow color in it in some sort of mellow pattern.

  • 15 years ago

    Edgrr, that paint color looks like the same one I tried to use in the basement. In my case the room had no natural lighting and the floor was a warm stained concrete color. We ended up repainting in a warm neutral because it was entirely too institutional in our space. You have a window, so Prickly's ideas of adding warmth via fabrics might work well for you.

    Zipdee's room looks happy and fresh. The tone/hue looks a little less gray, plus that room looks like it gets tons of natural light.

    It's amazing what light does to colors.

  • 15 years ago

    The ledge emphasizes the low ceiling in the room, so I would paint it the same color as the walls to have it fade into the background. In addition, I would mount full length draperies at the ceiling level to add height, as well as softness to the room.

  • 15 years ago

    I really like that little ledge around the room. Not sure if you guys are diy, but if you are I'd look into adding trim on it such as window stool, but keep it at a very similar depth, with just the edge of the stool sticking out past the current depth. It would make it easier to dust too than just drywall.

    Then leaning more pictures and placing some things around that ledge would go a long way to warming it up along with fabrics. I think you think it looks cold because you don't have much things up/in there yet.

    I would do drapes to the ledge and not floor length. Seems to go better with the style of the room to me.

  • 15 years ago

    I was thinking something like these down to the ledge, but they are too long and it doesn't look like they have any other sizes.

    The problem with the ledge is that it's about 6". It's pretty wide.

    I'm thinking of adding an orange vase and putting it next to a taller white one in the corner by the picture.

    I never thought about it making the celing look lower. That's something I'm going to look in to. When I was painting the room, I did think about making it blend in, though.

  • 15 years ago

    I like those curtains. If you can cut fabric you could do a no-sew-hem on them to make the length you need. Or if you know how to sew just shorten them.

  • 15 years ago

    Not those drapes. There's already way too much black in the room. There's so much in fact that it needs to be neutralized or eliminated. I'd paint that armoire and ditch the headboard. Get a piece of plywood cut to size and cover it with some batting and a pretty textural fabric with lots of orange in it to create an upholstered headboard. That will add more texture and color to create warmth. You need some bedding with some color like this:

    Or this:

    Or this:

    Think about maybe doing a warm brown accent wall behind the bed like the third picture, and use lots of lamps with warm white bulbs. Lighting plays a crucial part of a room feeling warm. Ceiling lights are cold. Lamps are warm.

  • 15 years ago

    I would either add molding to emphasis the shelf, or paint it the wall color to make it blend in. As it is now, it looks like an unfinished element.

    I presume you are going to cap off the mirrors on the post with something? If not, you might as well paint the remaining post the same color as the walls so they will look finished. I love the way you covered the post with mirrors!

    The room does not look "cold" to me at all, it just looks unfinished. The curtains will help a lot.

  • 15 years ago

    I once saw a Candace Olson room where she used dark leather curtains in a room. I think it made the room warm and sexy. After seeing your contemporary taste, I think faux leather drapes would be neat. Plus a faux fur throw. lol

  • 15 years ago

    Now, the problem is I want to make the shelf blend in, but I also plan on using it as a shelf. Should I just add moulding?

    The post is going to be capped off for sure.

    I really like those brown curtains, but like hollysprings said, there's too much black. Although they look nice on one side, the other side might be too dark and I don't plan on using two different curtains. I'm also looking for some new bedding to pull out the orange as well as some rust orange curtains.

    However, I want to try to keep it a bit contemporary.

  • 15 years ago

    What do you think of these?